This is book 3 in the "Difficult Dukes" series. This story is about Giles and Alice. It's a brother's best friend, second chance trope.
Alice and Giles have no each other since they were children. They've been dancing around each other since she was 17 and he 19.
Alice is now 25 and she has decided she must wed. He brother is a wastrel and his reckless conduct can get him killed at any time. She needs to protect herself. So she puts herself on the marriage mart for the second time and this time is an instant success.
Giles has led a reckless life along with Alice's brother. But when Alice is being courted seriously by a duke, he has to stop and take stock of his life. Is he willing to give it all up for Alice?
I liked the banter that went back and forth between the two. I liked Giles being her hero on more than one occasion.
What I didn't like was that there could have been more chemistry. I just didn't feel it between these two.
But all in all I liked the book.
I want to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book.
⭐⭐⭐⭐

I have been waiting for book 3 of the Difficult Duke series forever! I have multiple times put this book on my wishlist, and finally Loretta Chase has given it to us! Alice and Giles were teased and teased and teased again and again in the last two books and it is finally their time to shine! There is a lot going on in this book - brothers best friend, long suffering, love, meant to be, lots of miscommunication. But there is also a strong depth of character and humor. I have to admit that I did need to go back and reference the first two books because they were sometimes I was a tiny bit confused by some things, but for people who are reading this series together currently that won’t be a problem at all. Loretta Chase is one of the best historical romance authors in the game and she consistently lives up to the hype

Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, so I hate to give Loretta a lower rating but the last two books in this series were just not for me. I absolutely loved the first book in this series and even mentioned I was anxious to get Alice and Blackwood’s story. Second chance, yes; banter, double yes. Unfortunately, that is all that is going for this story. I did not know it was the “don’t touch my sister book”, at least I don’t remember it from the other books but it went on too long. There are lots of Loretta’s books that are amazing, just not these last two for me.

Alice's brother and his two Duke friends are extremely immature twenty-seven-year-olds. They want no responsibility, only horse races, boxing, brawls, gaming, and pranks. When the three drunks eventually misfire a gun, slightly injuring her brother, Alice realizes her brother will probably die young so she better marry to protect herself. She'll lose her home when her vile male cousin inherits. She goes to London and successfully joins the marriage mart. A jealous Blackwood, one of the immature friends, follows. This sounds promising but things just get strange. <spoiler>Alice and Blackwood marry about halfway through the book. The couple is mostly apart. He feels his friend Ashmont, can't deal with his friends being married so he goes off with him for a few months leaving her with her charities and work at court.</spoiler> Most of the story is set before the happenings of the first two books. Suddenly, in about two paragraphs, those books are summarized. What we mostly get is a series of escapades involving a street urchin who keeps getting kidnapped, the odious cousin up to no good, and her missing brother. I was disappointed after enjoying the second book of the series so much.

This is the third book in the series. I would recommend reading the others first, since the characters from those play a part in this one.
I have always been a Loretta Chase fan, but this book seemed off from her others.
Alice and Giles have known each other forever, since he is one of her brother's friends. Alice is a strong character, and there was good chemistry between her and Giles.
Most of their marriage is spent apart with each working on their own agendas.
There are some great scenes and some humor in the story.
All in all, it was an entertaining story.

There's a lot going on in My Inconvenient Duke. A young lady who needs to be married ASAP. A trio of scoundrel dukes who need to grow up. A missing brother. A scheming cousin. Other chaos that doesn't even happen on-page (and takes place in other books). Buried in under that is a solid second-chance romance with strong banter and a sweet tumble into love (after swearing it off altogether). Alice and Blackwood are classic romance characters, and when they have a chance to interact away from the mess, they're a delight.

But for me, the main takeaway of this book is simply how much was going on. Arguably too much, but at least the chaos was fun!

3.5/5

I regret to write that this is an unusual miss for me from one of my favorite romance authors. This book has at times the author's trademark banter between the main couple that is entertaining and reminiscent of Chase's former books, which is really the only reason I am generously giving it three stars. That is, however, nearly the only redeeming aspect of a book that I found a slog to get through as well as a confusing plot to follow. The book reads more like a series of outlines with clumsy starts and stops, as one story awkwardly transitions into another story bearing only tangential connection. I have a difficult time trying to clarify what this book is about, even setting aside the well known backstory of Chase's difficulty completing it. Forget the previous two books in the Difficult Dukes series where Alice and Blackwood are introduced as a troubled married couple. That plot has very little to do with this book, even though that theme is awkwardly introduced in the second half.

So what is this book about? Alice Ancaster is the long-suffering sister of the notorious Ripley, a dissolute and irresponsible rake who she fears will die an early death and leave her without a safety net. A cad in the family, nicknamed The Worm, is readying to pounce and threatens Alice for much of the book, leading her to seek the security of marriage in society. For a short period of time, the book seems to be about Alice's adventures in finding a mate, putting Blackwood in the insecure position of trying to protect her while coping with his feelings for the one who got away. But that plot dissipates almost entirely into thin air as new characters are introduced, including a wayward pickpocket boy straight out of a Dickens novel who Alice strangely frets over, Ripley's mysterious disappearance and Alice and Blackwood's sudden urgent road trip to rescue him. Along the way, themes of Alice's unrequited love for Blackwood, a sudden marriage, the burden Blackwood faces for having to care for the other two difficult dukes, Blackwood's unhappiness with life as a married man, Alice's sudden devotion to her charity work that causes tension in an already inexplicable marriage, a late introduction of Alice's abuse as a child and a need to rectify boarding school victimization of young girls, etc. I kept a list of every new plot introduced until I grew tired of trying to figure out where this book was going and what conflicts it is trying to explore. I ultimately ended up not really caring much.

I think in a different and better written book, Alice and Blackwood would have been fine characters in this author's canon, though perhaps not really creating new opportunities for her. Chase has written both of these prototypes before and with much better development.

Giles, Duke of Blackwood, is something of a drunken wastrel - like his two best friends, the dukes of Ashmont and Ripley. Ripley's sister Alice is fed up with all of them, and decides to go to London to find a husband before her worthless brother gets himself killed and leaves her at the mercy of his evil heir, their cousin Worbury. Giles has cared for Alice for years but knows he isn't good enough for her. So when he hears Worbury may make trouble for Alice, he decides to go to London to look out for her. Alice is a pretty self sufficient type, who can generally look after herself. But due to Worbury's bahavior, Giles' help is needed. He is forced to be not only responsible, but uncommonly sober and Alice regains some earlier feelings of attraction to him. The characters have depth and plenty of humor, so what might have been a formulaic retread becomes a moving, funny and involving story. A keeper.

I love Loretta Chase. She's not why I didn't vibe with this book. It was the scoundrel brother trope that I loathe. I read historical romances so I escape from women having to do it all! I should have double checked before reading this. Overall, the book was okay -- i feel like others would enjoy it more than I, because I am a bit biased.

I thought I would love this book, but I feel like I only liked it. Maybe if I had read the other books in the series I would have felt connected to the characters. It was an okay book; I just wanted more detail to these characters. The writing was well done, and quite detailed making me want to read more from this author. The romance just wasn't doing it for me with it constantly feeling like it takes a back seat to the rest of the story.

It’s been awhile since I’ve read a Loretta Chase book and after reading My Inconvenient Duke I remember why she’s a favorite! This book was funny, heartfelt and just very entertaining. You hear a lot about how everyone loves a bad boy, well put a bad boy and a bad girl together and it’s perfection! Giles and Alice are two people that strain under the rules of society and have different levels of success meeting them. I especially enjoyed reading their story through their marriage. So many books stop once our main characters are married. This demonstrates the trouble and issues that arise even after the “HEA”. I didn’t realize this was the last book in a series of 3 and although it didn’t diminish my enjoyment, I did feel like I missed something important because it was referenced and 2 very important people to the story were suddenly married. I’ll definitely be reading their first two in the series to see what I missed.

I'vebeen reading Loretta Chase's books for decades, and own all but one of them, so I was really happy to get this one from NetGalley! Chase's books address not only romance, but also women's rights (or lack of them during that time), including women NOT being able to own their own property after marriage, and so many other things that we take for granted in this day and age. Imagine a world where it is legal to beat your wife and children, as well as babies and children who were unwanted by their parents being put into so-called baby farms, and schools like the one emntioned in this book. Death rates were high enough then in a good home, so just think how many children starved or were worked to death in cold, sterile environments. Passion was also something that "good" women weren't supposed to experience in their marriages; heaven forbid they looked for happiness outside of marriage, except for the very wealthy or well-connected aristocracy/peerage. I was so pleased with this book, as it showed that some men and women DID break those bonds of normalcy for that age, and became people of worth, not only because of their money or bloodlines, but for all they accomplished for those less well off.

My thanks to NetGalley for loaning me this ARC; however, all opinions are my own.

We start with Alice being terrified that her idiot brother will be killed sometime soon, so she sets off to find a husband this season, to make sure she’s never at the mercy of her cruel cousin. Her brother’s best friend, the Duke of Blackwood, is all sorts of distressed at the thought of Alice marrying anyone else, even though he has no claim to her. He clearly is nursing a long time affection for her, despite having chosen a lifetime of debauchery with his friends instead of the upstanding life he could have had with her. And when Blackwood hears that Alice’s terrible cousin is in town, he tries his best to protect her. We end up with a wild goose chase in the middle of the book that have Blackwood and Alice in a compromising circumstance and needing to marry. While this seems like the beginning of a happily ever after for them, they get pulled in different directions due to their competing responsibilities. As a standalone read, this book was fine. As a follow-up after the first two books, it fell a little flat because all the hints from the first two books suggest that these two are officially estranged. We learn more about this so-called estrangement in this book and do eventually end up with a happily ever after, but it was much less dramatic than I expected.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for providing a DRC of this title for review.

I think there have been other Loretta Chase novels I've enjoyed more, but it's still one I'll definitely recommend to my historical romance-loving patrons! 3.5/5 stars.

Trope: Second-chance romance; brother's best friend
Steam level: 2
Part of a series, and probably best read in order.

3.5 stars rounded up. I have loved Loretta Chase's books for so long that I feel bad leaving less than 4 stars, but once you get past the strong, true-to-the period writing style, accurate historical detail, fun banter, and dry humor here, you're unfortunately not left with a super-strong plot and the pacing is a bit off. From reading the previous two books in the series, you would think that a Very Big Secret or terrible obstacle had led to a cold marriage between the MC's. But a big chunk of the storyline takes numerous excursions through HR Land tropes instead: there's the machinations of the slimy cousin; the reckless brother who is in danger of ruining his dukedom; the rescued street urchin; the well-meaning suitor who's a great guy but doesn't "do it" for the MFC. And tbh I wasn't that crazy about Alice; she's self-righteous too much of the time, and for someone who looks down on her brother's behavior, her own behavior can be reckless.

I did like Giles. He's more of a "fake rake" with a B-type personality. Your typical late-to-mature guy who was easily led by his buddies. He felt something for Alice when they were younger but was terrified to act on it. There's a lot of rumination about his failings but they're all from the distant past. I never quite got why he judged himself so harshly, and the angst between him and Alice feels largely manufactured.

The final chapter is sweet. I wish more of the plot had focused on the MC's learning to appreciate each other during their marriage. Their romantic connection doesn't really stand out until very late in the book.

Loretta Chase has been one of my very favorite romance authors ever since I read the absolutely best romance novel, Lord of Scoundrels. Her characters are interesting, but what really makes her books so much fun is the witty dialogue between the two main characters. It’s just a delight to read.

This book is part of a series about three handsome and rich dukes who are best friends and who seem to spend all their time in dissipated living and silly escapades. But they’re all going to mature and find their inner strength of character when they meet the right woman.

If you haven read a Chase romance before, you’re in for a treat of discovery.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy.


It's been a long time since I read a book by Chase, and I wasn't sure if I would still enjoy her books, but when I saw one of her titles on NetGalley, I could not resist. Rest assured, dear readers! Loretta Chase still has it!! The dialogue between Alice & Giles, Lord Blackwood, was fast and witty and delightful.

Yes, all the "naïve virgin woman and experienced man" stuff got old fast, but I did my best to ignore those bits.

The majority of romance story arcs start with the couple first meeting (or meeting again), proceed through the couple discovering their feelings, finally declaring said feelings, and often the arc ends with marriage. But in this case, marriage happened 70% of the way in. I was actually confused and checked to see if I still had chapters left! After this, Several chapters were just rehashes of events that happened in the other books in this series, and I don’t know why they were included here. The rest of the book ties up some subplot points involving other characters (a street urchin named Jonesy and Alice's cousin Lord Worbury). It was an odd choice to tack this on at the end like that - not bad, just not expected.

Plot: Plot was very exciting. I liked how there was so many exciting plots sprinkled in.
Characters: Individually, I very much like Giles and Alice but I didn't ' really feel much chemistry between the two until maybe like the last two chapters and at that point, it feels rushed.
Spice: 2/5 There's only one fully written out scene and the others were sprinkled about were more light petting than anything.
Overall: This feels more like a plot than a romance kind of book. If you're more into reading adventure then yes read this. If you're more into spice, then I would skip this.

I’m not sure why I didn’t love this one. I enjoyed the 2nd book in this series, which is why I requested this one, but it wasn’t as good. Like almost too banter-y and the location additions seemed distracting.

Loretta Chase is Loretta Chase and even at her…not best, I still enjoy what I’m reading from her. And I mostly enjoyed this one. If only because we’ve been teased by this couple for two books and I was ecstatic to finally get to Alice and Giles. For the most part (or better yet for the first 70-ish percent), this was classic Chase and I loved it. The banter is spot on and so dryly witty. Alice and Giles fall into this friends to lovers dynamic that was endearing, sweet, and hysterical (the Dis-Graces are going to be disgraceful, y’know). So far so good. No complaints.

But I kept wondering how when and why this couple came to be the estranged married couple we’ve seen in the prior two stories. I actually was confused when I got to 70-ish percent and still hadn’t even encountered hide nor hair of a marriage on the rocks. And when it did come….I didn’t even really feel like I needed it. Because it wasn’t done well or even really necessary that far into the story?

It’s Chase, so I still had a good time and I loved Alice and her feral fierceness and Giles and his secret gigantic heart of gold (A Chase classic). But I didn’t *love* it as a whole and I’m a bit sad about it!